I've pretty much reached the conclusion that, if any one of the Allentown Mayoral candidates besides incumbent Mayor Edwin "Fed Ed" Pawlowski is to be ignored, it is his pale imitation, Charlie Thiel. I've dubbed him Fed Ed Lite because of sleazy campaign tactics in which he used a third party intermediary to approach two Mayoral candidates and offer them jobs if they drop out. This political logrolling is perfectly legal But it sends the wrong message in a City that has been decimated by a federal political corruption investigation that has already bagged and tagged seven people, including four City staffers. In addition, he conducted an unethical push poll in which he referred to himself as the only honest Mayoral candidate. And he is scheduling wine-tasting seminars for the oh-so- so-do-so-pa people in the Jenn Mann cabal at $100 a pop, while ignoring Allentown's blue collars and working class. But if there was any lingering doubt in my mind before, I am now more convinced than ever that he is Fed Ed Lite.
Thiel recently conducted a news conference to discuss transparency and ethics in an attempt to pawn himself off as ethical. But guess what? He failed to invite this bottom-feeding blogger to the event for some reason. That's exactly the kind of trick that Fed Ed himself likes to pull.
58 comments:
Sorry, but I have decided you must ID yourself for all personal attacks against Allentown Mayoral candidates.
Feeling ignored really bothers you doesn't it, BO?
Interesting that you didn't get an invite but the story was covered by a real news outlet, the Allentown Morning Call. Maybe you aren't the news source of record for Allentown that you think you are, or think you should be.
If you want Diet Ed, you'll get a pale imitation of the real thing.
Ed, it's the real thing. Go all the way.
11:07, 11:30, I received notifications from his campaign until I dared criticize him. I have learned over the years that people who try to keep me away do so bc they have something to hide. And over the years, I have become a news source. That bothers midnight trolls like you.
Sounds like you're right on the money on this one Bernie. If it smells like crap, and looks like crap, it's very likely crap. Keep keeping them honest.
@11:07PM Looks like you're simply looking for a reason to take a pot shot at Bernie, when the fact of the matter is he's a legitimate source of investigative journalism in the Lehigh Valley. You on the other hand appear to be ignorant, a troll, or both.
11:57 You do know Bernie that intimidation tactics are a standard tool of Democrats to silence them. Clearly you've been a victim of that tactic and should reconsider your support of Democratic candidates and look at the Republican candidates.
I'm sure they would be happy for your support.
12:16, I do not make the assumptions you do concerning all members of a political party, which is illogical. I happen to be registered Democrat and support many Democrats. I support many Republicans as well, and do split my ticket in nearly every election. I often support more Rs than Ds. Transparency is always my top consideration, and Thiel has proved to me that he's a phony who preaches transparency, but fails to practices it. Incidentally, he is a Republican in Democratic clothing bc he knows that's the only way he stands a chance in Allentown.
12:16 You can never trust a turncoat rat.
Why should he kiss your opinionated ass? You hate the guy and have attacked him at all chances. You think he should invite you to his press conference. You are nuts. You are legitimate press in your own mind. Everyone knows you irrationally attack people you hate and fawn over those you love.
Your blog is less "reporting" than propaganda for your mancrushes and a cheap hit piece for your vitriol.
Clean up your own emotional train wreak of a blog and you might be taken seriously.
This isn't irrational, it's actually right on the money and only scratching the surface.
Bernie is hitting this nail squarely on the head.
So who does a disbarred lawyer and self-styled "news source" from Nazereth think should be mayor of Allentown? And why should anyone care? Most of the Democrats and Republicans who will vote in this election don't even know who you are. Those that do who actually vote in Allentown, except for your dedicated handful of fellow self-important blowhards, won't be swayed by your opinions disguised as "facts" either. You are no Edward R. Murrow. Not by a long shot. That's reality.
Then you have no reason to worry.
Yes, bernie is the shit when it comes to unedited out breaking news worthy article. The moronic gag and live are trying to be relevent, yet still have there advertismental twist and cupon clipping participants that are selling free article at 100 percent mark up in there bodagas.
I know he writes for one of the two but the article are not seen on the electronic version. I am a troll too, of worthy news article reader and an avid reader of both molovinsky and bernie but molovinsky limits his article to epicentral and its park systems and surrounding waterways.
Bernie Theil just loks like the mentors older brother with a few inches and Fed Ed Lite is a very good tag line for both!
Thiel is my favorite young Republican, and Jesus loves him too.
I left this comment on the M Call article yesterday regarding his plan to reform the Allentown Board of Ethics. "Best practice"in municipal ethics regarding board selection is to have members nominated by respected, non-partisan community organizations. Nominees should not only be balanced in party affiliation but also have not been involved in political party leadership in the past. In other words, the composition of the board should be non-partisan. This is critical. In order to gain the trust of the community and the public officials it oversees, it must be independent and outside of political pressure. If Mr. Thief is serious about improving Allentown's board of ethics, that is the place to start. As long as the mayor, no matter who he is, selects ithe board's members, the appearance and perhaps the fact of political influence will taint its decisions.
I did not intend my above comment to be anonymous.
Theil's stock just went up.....and got under the thin skin of a wanna be "journalist" disbarred lawyer who has made a complete mess out of every facet of life and refuses to function in any capacity that warrants and invite to anything.
self entitled Ohare is nothing more that a pimple faced pre-pubescent teen, teased and bullied by all peers, picked last for teams in school sports, and now just has an axe to grind with society in general. Apologies in advance to teens who actually exhibit more maturity than this dunce bag.
The only thing he is "owed" is a giant sized middle finger from society.
So what this election boils down to is the devil you know versus the devil you don't know.
Most people don't work for the city and don't really care about which bureaucrat doesn't like who downtown. They will vote for the devil they already know.
Actually, they will vote for neither.
Are there any charges of illegal siphoning of money or the mayor enriching himself such as taking kickbacks ?
What do you call forcing someone to pay for his meals? Forcing him to make contributions? Rigging bids? Then using burner phones, doing electronic sweeps of his office and lying to the FBI?
“An honest public servant can't become rich in politics.” — Harry Truman
Follow the money trail and the bank accounts. All of the other stuff is simply part of Democratic machine politics.
Ed's going to jail soon enough.
Ray is clearly best positioned to be a transitional leader.
This is NOT a partisan issue. Political corruption is a human nature problem.
Ok machine politics. Just coincidental that you'll find the same in Philadelphia, Camden, Baltimore, Washington D. C. and other major cities controlled by the Democratic party.
While I appreciate the kind words, I meant what I said. No anonymous personal attacks will be allowed at any of the Mayoral candidates. You'll have to say who you are if you want to call someone a political hack.
I'm listening!
Why didn't you just go to the debate/forum on April 18th??? All 9 candidates were there, and there were a few squeemish moments for public official number 3. of course the morning call only showed our so called mayor in a great light. especially their video. Shortell did a good job though in his article...Though he left out the David jones, O Connell comments on public official 3.
Whats really funny though is only 3 of the nine candidates even mentioned the only community debate coverage on their facebook page. (despite the fact that pcntv was filming live....
That "debate", if you can call it that, was in the middle of the day. But I watched it on Facebook and reported it the following day. A mid-day news conference is tough, but one late Friday I could attend.
11:17 Our "So Called" Mayor was elected by the voters of Allentown three times. And may well be re-elected for a fourth term this year.
They all did a decent job. Other than Pawlowski and Bennett they would all make decent mayors.
Bennett has the backing of many respected residents - Jeanette Eichenwald, Dr. Diane Scott and Charlotte Mann to name a few. Amazing to bring in leaders of the key areas of importance to Allentown residents. She has the ability to address both the reality and perception of Allentown’s challenges that have stalled our city’s progress for decades.
Anybody who takes money from "Fed Ed" for political office is just as bad as "Fed Ed". How can you trust him? He has no current job, [just like "Fed Ed" in 2005], he has political aspirations, [other than the one he is in now; just like "Fed Ed"] and he is apparently non-transparent, [just like "Fed Ed"]. The only difference is about 100lbs.
Carson Gable Jr.
Bernie... Ed is holding an open house at his place later this week. Everyone is invited, presumably even a blogger who doesn't care for him.
I'll be there
7:49 Bennett is running to raise money to pay back $85,000 of "debt" that she has been carrying since her losses in the 2001 and 2005 primary elections for mayor. So, the chances are that almost every dollar anybody gives her is likely to go in her pocket. How much has she raised in this election, how much has she spent on her campaign and how much has she paid to herself and her husband? Check out her finance report. It is all there.
If it's "all there," then tell us. Don't be lazy.
You are getting desperate.
Incorrect. Check out the financial reports she proactively put on her website.
That $80,000+ represents the funds she and her husband personally put in her 2001 and 2005 Mayors Races which only narrowly lost. Imagine how many better off we'd be if she'd won instead of Afflerbach and Pawlowski!
She's only following to the letter PA Election Law by her proactive and honest reporting of the funds she and her personally invested in her races. And went well beyond state law by posting on her website.
In reviewing her report for 2017 race to date - not only had Sam raised far more than any other Candidate ($47,000 to $20,000 (Thiel) to $10,000 (Jones) and $5,000 (Siegel) - a clear sign of the deep support she receives locally and nationally. Let see what May 5 report shows.
Bernie is right. Pawlowski is just wrong and Bennett is just as divisive a candidate. She comes on this blog and constantly promotes and repeats herself. She raises money from outside the area people that all want something just like Ed does. When she is not bragging about jobs that she had to leave, she is claiming some new victimization story.
Nest to Fed Ed she is old news and not worth consideration for a new start for Allentown.
Since we're discussing Bennett, lets not forget she left town after the Properties of Merit scandal blew up. What a fine job she did.
The only logical choice appears to be Ray O'Connell. Allentown needs a fresh start with a Mayor that is above reproach. The others do not appear capable of getting past divisiveness and taints of problems.
As any good mother knows there comes a time when difficult decisions need to be made. Sams son was getting older and she needed to stop the arduous commute to focus on the growing needs of her family.
At the same time Jeanette Eichenwald started to express to her the pickle Allentown was in and encouraged her to run for mayor.
Sam genuinely loves Allentown and it's people. All your false accusations have been refuted yet you keep recycling them. You have nothing, you are nothing and you are running scared. If not, then you would be concentrating on your own campaign efforts.
"Sam genuinely loves Allentown and it's people. .... You have nothing, you are nothing"
We love Allentown as well. I was born here, were you ?
Dave, Your comment is a personal attack and until you further ID yourself, I refuse to host it. I have only said about four times now that I will no longer host anonymous personal attacks at A-town Mayoral candidates.
Who cares where you were born? We are all in this together now. I like Bennett and her platform.
@5:34 what are taints of problems? Learn how to communicate.
Greetings Bernie. Just wanted to weigh in on comment about my work with Properties of Merit. When I ran for U.S. Congress in 2008, honored to be nation's most endorsed "challenger", and garnering a record number of votes/funds raised ($970,000+) - also an honor to be invited to be part of national CEO search of oldest organization financially supporting women candidates - Women's Campaign Fund/She Should Run. I served in that role for five years - commuting from Allentown PA to Washington D.C. - the second longest serving CEO in that organization's history.
I did not "leave town" as comment states - continuing to serve on numerous boards: Governor Appointee Lehigh County Board of Assistance, Board Officer to both William Allen Construction Company and The Freedom Memorial etc.
Properties of Merit did not "blow up". In my race for U.S. Congress, my opponent, then fellow First Presbyterian Church member and oft time civic colleague/collaborator - Charlie Dent - made the decision to incite political attack against me through Governor Rendell's funding for this effective/low cost civic improvement program to go statewide. After all the-tempest-in-a-tea-potting, The Morning Call editorially concluded that this political attack had no basis. I'm grateful that Properties of Merit still runs in communities in the Commonwealth and Upstate NY where I originally created it in 1984 - and grateful for Dent's ongoing moderate-Republican-breath-of-fresh-airing in D.C.
Comments here are being closed bc some anonymouse troll refuses to follow the rules.
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